Celine Hackett realised while still at school that IT was going to play an important role in the workplace. Having completed her education in the late 80s, she signed up for a one-year course in IT applications to learn the basics of IT apps such as Word and Excel. This was back in the 80s, a time of high unemployment in Ireland and an era when such skills counted as a bonus in the hunt for a job.
It comes as no great surprise that someone with the foresight of Hackett’s should go on to become managing director of a leading trade-only distributor, PC Cubed. However, even with IT skill under her belt, she still had to start at the bottom like almost everyone else. “My career in IT started at Lendac Data Systems, working as receptionist.”
Her career motivation grew at about the same pace as the IT market and “I took on various roles within the company, eventually becoming part of the external sales team.”
Not content to rest on her laurels, Hackett began studying marketing which, she says, “gave me a sound basis for getting to grips with technology sales and business.” Eager to broaden her experience, she moved to the Ormond Printing Company and took up an internal sales role “where I managed accounts and was involved in some of the IT side of the business.”
Through her contact with Chris Tate, who ran a successful menswear shop in Wicklow, Hackett developed an interest in the retail market. Tate and Hackett later came up with an idea for a new venture, and so PC Cubed was born.
“While researching for the venture we were extremely frustrated that there was a complete lack of hardware supply for the retailer in Ireland. After further research we realised we had indeed discovered a genuine gap in the IT sector.” Hackett said one such void was in the supply of electronic point of sale (EPoS) hardware to installers on the island. Filling this void, which PC Cubed now does, resulted from being able to source the right hardware. The next chapter in PC Cubed’s success story was “compiling the right list of companies to target.”
Hackett describes her role as very challenging yet ultimately rewarding as she presides over a growing company. “I have gained great satisfaction from being part of a company that has increased in size through a changing economy and seeing planned strategies come to reality. On a personal level I’d have to say that aiming for early retirement is a high motivator, too!”
Hackett says male domination of the IT sector is no longer the big issue that it once was. “This (dominance) is eroding throughout the larger IT firms and today you see a lot more women in management positions. When the company started, I had to overcome this gender bias as well as an age bias.” She said that, through determination, she conquered these hurdles to develop relationships “with customers who appreciated my knowledge of the market and product, all of which overcame any potential problems.” She adds: “In recent years all this has vanished and I have not recently encountered any bias towards my position as MD.”
Asked about achieving a balance between work and a personal life, Hackett said she believes this will be a constant thorn in many women’s sides. “Getting that equilibrium is paramount to both the success of a company and to achieving synergy at home.
Women have family decisions to make in relation to every stage of their career – decisions that don’t necessarily affect men in the same way. As women continue to climb the career ladder, men have had to take on a greater role in the home.” She added that she had recently witnessed a reversal of the typical working parents’ roles in that the man had taken on the role of the more active parent. “I see the same with employees of PC Cubed and among other business colleagues. This may continue to be the case as women strive to find the ultimate work-family life balance!”
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